Understanding Your Hair

Scalp is nothing but skin on the head, which is similar to body skin. Like skin on the body, the scalp consists of two layers - the dermis and the epidermis. However, larger and deeper hair follicles are present on the scalp. When our hair has become severly damaged due to overprocessing, over use of heat styling products, or simply the lack of care we must take time to undo what we have done.  It took years before the damage was done, and other than cutting the hair down to the new growth, you must be patient in the correction process.  Here are some terms to help you understand your hair. Juanderful Hair products are geared at reconditioning damaged hair, and protecting healthy hair. Hair should be washed once a week. Do not use shampoos that contain hair detergents for purposes of lathering.  Such detergents can strip the natural sebum from the hair and cause damage.

POROSITY

Is the hair's ability to absorb and retain moisture. Porous hair is very rough when dry and feels gummy to the toudh when wet.  When the cuticle has been damaged, it prevents moisture from being absorbed into the hair. So when the hair dries, it feels rough, like straw in a sense.  Hair porosity is affected by excessive exposure to mechanical abuse such as blow-dryers, hot irons, sun, chlorine and continued use of harsh shampoos, colors, highlights and straighteners/relaxers.  Hair that’s over-porous should not receive a chemical straightening  until the hair has been reconditioned, or removed by cutting.

CUTICLE

Is the outermost layer of the hair is a hard, shingle-like layer of over-lapping cells some 5 to 12 deep. The cuticle protects the inner structure of the hair. It is the first line of defence against all forms of damage. When the cuticle is damaged, the hair appears dull, tangles easily, and has a rough texture. Juanderful Hair Conditioner helps reduce tangles.

 

ELASTICITY

The cortex or the middle or inner layer, which gives strength and elasticity to the hair.  This layer contains pigments that give the hair its color.   Hair elasticity refers to the ability of the hair to stretch beyond its normal length and then spring back. Normal hair when wet can be stretched to about 40 to 50% of its normal length and return. Dry hair is not so elastic, it will stretch about 20 percent of its length and return to its normal position. When elasticity damage occurs, the cortex has  been seriously disrupted or even destroyed.

BREAKAGE OR NORMAL SHEDDING

Severe breakage of hair should not be confused with normal shedding or hair loss. If the hair that is breaking does not contain a small bulb at the end, then you can more than likely view that as normal shedding. If it does than that is breakage that you should be concerned with.  A magifying glass can help you distinguish the difference. There are many ways in which hair can be damaged causing breakage. Mechanical and chemical degradation through the abuse of harsh chemicals, bleaching, coloring, permanent straightening,  and over-use of mechanical styling aids (i.e., hot irons, vigorous towel drying and hand-held blow dryers) can cause severe breakage problem.  Excessive hair loss from all over the scalp is called diffuse hair loss. Some conditions may be related to hereditary hair loss and diffuse hair loss in women. It can occur from body imbalance, which in turn disturbs the normal hair growth cycle. Hair loss is a delicate subject, in which case you should consult with your physician. Other factors that contribute to hair loss: birth control pills, anesthetics, surgery, high fever, trauma, crash diet and age.

A deficiency of these vitamins & minerals can be the cause of hair breakage:

• Vitamin B
• Vitamin E
• Iron
• Zinc
• Silica

A lack of these whole foods can also be the cause of hair breakage:

• Sunflower seeds
• Almonds
• Walnuts
• Dark leafy greens
• Flaxseed oil

FLACKY SCALP

Dry flaky scalp! If you have a dry or flaky scalp it could be for a variety of reasons. Changes in weather climates can affect scalp moisture. Winter produces a dry climate in houses and the cold air outside makes skin chapped. Medications can also cause dry scalps. It is very important to correct dry flaky scalps as sebum build up can clog hair follicles which could lead to early hair loss. Many "store brand" dandruff shampoos are very abrasive on the hair and can damage the hair. Juandeful Hair Vinegar Rinse is excellent for dry flaky scalp.

 

DOs and DON'Ts

Do shampoo your hair weekly

Do sterile combs and brushes weekly

Do not vigorously rub hair when towel drying

Do wash your head scarves and hair coverings weekly

Do not allow chemicals to stay on longer than the recommended time, just because it is not burning

Do comb the hair in a different direction every so often

Do not allow strangers to touch your hair as you do not know what is on their hands or where there hands may have been

Do make sure you rinse all of any type product out of your hair, chemicals, shampoos, etc

Do not scratch scalp with finger nails

Do not share hair combs or brushes

Hair Vitamin

Our hair Vitamin contains some of the most essential B vitamins that promotes hair growth. Here are some of them and why Jackie uses this and highly recommends it.

Juanderful Hair Vitamin

Inositol

Inositol is also a member of the B vitamin group. It is a compound occurring in the brain, muscles, liver, kidney and eyes.

In laboratory animals, a diet lacking Inositol produced baldness, but when the vitamin was added to the food of these animals, the hair grew back again. It was also observed that male animals lost hair twice as fast as female animals. The result of this experiment would suggest that males require a higher Inositol intake than females. An Inositol deficient diet can also cause eczema, a form of skin irritation.

One doctor in a series of experiments prescribed Inositol together with other sources of B vitamins to all his balding patients. In almost all case's hair loss was arrested, in some case's hair growth was noticeable in as little as one month. In one case hair recovery was total and not one bald spot remained.

Inositol, also appears to reduce the amount of cholesterol in the blood.

Biotin

Biotin often called vitamin H, is yet another B complex component. Biotin is a proven hair growth vitamin and a preventative to excessive hair loss. It appears to metabolize fatty acids. Fatty acids are a valuable growth factor in numerous processes in the body including the hair. Biotin is also seen as an aid in preventing hair turning gray.

Biotin is found in egg yolks. Raw egg whites actually hinder effectiveness, but when the albumen (egg white) is cooked, the culprit - a substance called avidin is destroyed by heat. Biotin is also present in liver, milk, yeast and kidney.

Balding men might find that a Biotin supplement may keep their hair longer.

Zinc

In laboratory tests animals fed with a zinc supplement showed signs of more hair growth, as opposed to loss of hair in animals that were deprived of zinc in their feed. It was discovered that there was a change in the hair protein structure when zinc was deficient in the diet.

Severe zinc deficiency in humans has been shown to produce baldness and scalp problems that were reversed when zinc was returned to the diet.

Zinc has also been shown to stop hair turning gray. One doctor taking zinc for a year reversed the gray hairs which returned to their original color.

Zinc can be depleted by high stress levels. For a good source of zinc, wheat germ is the best, other sources are brewer's yeast, pumpkin seeds, oysters and mussels, shrimps and egg yolks.

One delightful effect of zinc is that it has long been regarded as an aphrodisiac, and as such it can be very beneficial for your sex life, which is not a bad side effect to have.

Protein

Protein is a basic ingredient in many hair shampoos and conditioners and is also the major ingredient of hair itself, which is at least ninety per cent protein. Whilst this should not necessarily be the main ingredient in your diet, its importance should not be ignored.

In controlled tests volunteers, supplementing their diets with protein in the form of 14g of gelatin daily, found it increased the thickness of individual hair strands by as much as 45 per cent in only two months.

Diet can influence both hair growth and quality and gelatin has exhibited one of the highest specific dynamic effects of any food or supplement.

Given that a strong hair is a healthy hair, the study noted that the gelatin induced increases in the diet constituted an improvement in the mechanical properties of the hair, including strength. When the volunteers stopped eating the gelatin, their hair returned to its original diameter within six months.

Vitamin E

A Canadian physician who started going gray was able to reverse the process by taking 800iu of vitamin E in capsule form daily. At the age of 68 after some 15 years of taking vitamin E he still has a healthy head of thick black hair, and is the envy of men half his age.

Vitamin E has also been shown to retard the ageing process. It has been suggested that gray hair is a symptom of body degeneration so a supplement of vitamin E can only be beneficial whether you have gray hair or not.

The best natural sources of vitamin E are wheat germ, Soya beans, broccoli, brussel sprouts, spinach and eggs.

Choline

Choline is a B vitamin like nutrient that's useful in counter acting the effects of stress. Recently scientists in America were able to induce toxic levels of stress in baby animals by limiting the amount of chorine in their diets.

Choline supplements prescribed to balding patients produced significant results to prove choline's worth in hair loss. Lecithin is a very good source of choline, at it also supplies inositol, a B complex vitamin with a particular affinity with choline, these two vitamins work together well.

Foods rich in choline are egg yolks, yeast, liver and wheat germ.

Vitamin A

A deficiency of Vitamin A will cause dry hair and rough skin. Vitamin A is stored in the liver and if large doses (50,000 - 100,000 iu daily) are taken for a prolonged period the liver cannot store the A vitamin, and it can build up in the body to give unpleasant side effects which include nausea, headaches, hair loss, drowsiness and weight loss.

The R.D.A. for vitamin A is 2,500 iu.

Pantothenic Acid

Pantothenic Acid also known as Calcium Pantothenate is considered to be important to the health of the skin and scalp. Pantothenic acid is necessary for the well being of every body cell and neither carbohydrate nor fat can be changed into energy without it.

This nutrient is also important for the functioning of the adrenal glands that produce much of the male sex hormones.

Volunteers who were feed on a diet deficient of pantothenic acid showed increased vulnerability to infection and adrenal levels dropped, blood pressure also dropped and constipation developed.

Animals lacking this nutrient in their diet became gray haired and the follicles started to waste away.

This supplement is most often found in B complex formulas.

This nutrient is obtained from liver, kidney, egg yolks, whole grains, milk and potatoes.